Press Release: President Obama’s Visit to Seattle

El Comité Pro Reforma Migratoria y Justicia Social and the May 1st Action CoalitionTo Hold a Demonstration in Conjunction With President Obama’s Visit To Seattle To Protest Enforcement-Only Policy With Immigration Reform, on August 17, 2010.

SEATTLE – El Comité Pro Reforma Migratoria y Justicia Social and the May 1st Action Coalition are mobilizing a protest in conjunction with President Obama’s visit to Seattle on Tuesday, August 17, 2010, to protest the increased deportation of immigrants and the use of enforcement only policies to deal with Immigration, which in turn put increased stress on our communities by instilling fear and intimidation, breaks families apart, and facilitates economic attrition in an already adverse economic environment. The intent is to draw attention to the plight of the immigrant community in wake of enforcement-first approaches to “Immigration Reform” which includes mass deportation, the “Secure Communities” program, the “287 (g)” Program, and E-Verify, among others. Details about the event are as follows:

What: March and Rally in conjunction with President Obama’s visit to Seattle

On November 5th, 2008 a wave of optimism flowed throughout the country with the election of Barack Obama. The framing of the “Hope” and “Change” messages resonated throughout after a conservative majority ran both the legislative and executive branches during most of former President Bush’s Administration. The message was especially symbolic in our communities as mass strikes and demonstrations in the spring of 2006 helped turn back congressional efforts to implement H.R. 4437 (otherwise known as the Sensenbrenner Bill), which would have been the most draconian anti-immigrant legislation in generations and would have effectively criminalized all undocumented workers and their allies for providing them humanitarian aid. The election of a new President and a majority Democratic Congress pointed toward ameliorating the adverse conditions our communities encountered under President Bush and the Republicans. Sadly, the optimism was short-lived as little has been done and repression of immigrant communities continues unabated.

Additional information on continued Bush-era practices can be found at the following links:

As such, we are using this visit by President Obama to Seattle as an opportunity to draw attention to the critical situation at hand within our communities. We mobilized en masse to support the President and his party under the idea that they would take action in a manner consistent with securing civil, labor, and human rights in reformation of our immigration system. In turn, we demand an immediate cease to harsh enforcement-only policies without human and civil rights and are requesting that President Obama make said policy, which has failed our communities and the country in general, obsolete. This can be done by the president by way of an Executive Order mandating the Department of Homeland Security make E-Verify, 287 (g), Secure Communities, and mass deportations a low priority.

For more information, contact the following: El Comité Pro Reforma Migratoria Y Justicia Social and the May 1st Action Coalition, 253.347.4229.